The New York Islanders, Columbus Blue Jackets and Atlanta Thrashers have played a total of 16 home games thus far in the 2010-11 season, the four teams all average under 12, 600 fans or filling less than 72 percent of their arenas. On the flip side, the Chicago Blackhawks are among 11 teams averaging at or above 100 percent of their building each night; of 30 teams, 19 are drawing more than 90 percent. The league struggled early last season to draw, but saw second half recovery post-Olympics and Winter Classic. This combined with exciting Stanley Cup play which set high marks for TV ratings, many teams chose to raise ticket prices.
According to The Globe and Mail, prices rose 4.4 percent league wide to $54.25 per ticket. While 11 teams cut prices or kept them stagnant, teams like the Washington Capitals hiked prices 24 percent. The New York Islanders, one of the struggling teams, had the second highest bump at 19.7 percent while Stanley Cup champs Chicago Blackhawks had the third highest price raise at 18 percent. Numbers come via Team Marketing Report.
Hockey fans weren't the only ones to pay more to catch a game; prices in the NFL are up 4.5 percent and MLB for 2010 were up 1.5 percent.
In conjunction with the ticket price rise, the average cost of taking a family of four is up 4.4 percent. The average Fan Cost Index, which is the cost to purchase four tickets, four hot dogs, park, buy two programs and two team hats, is $313.68 this season. The Blackhawks rose their FCI 20 percent to $350.58, which is $200 less than the league's highest FCI, the Toronto Maple Leafs who charge $572.32.
The Dallas Stars had the lowest price in the NHL at $29.68 and the league's lowest FCI $222.68, while Atlanta Thrashers lowered their prices 10 percent to $43.59.
You can see the data for the whole league, plus TMR Executive Editor Jon Greenberg’s analysis here.
Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter
If the NHL were a regular old, tax-paying corporation, conservatives would be losing their minds. First, the NHL takes over the Phoenix Coyotes and loses $25 million (which is to be paid back), now the league has given the Dallas Stars $8 million to keep the team afloat.
The Hockey News reported that the Stars have received $8 million in future television and revenue sharing money. The team is being financed by a group of unofficial owners after Tom Hicks led Hicks Sports Group defaulted on a $525 million in debt.
THN wrote:
The lenders are prepared to extend the team a line of credit when the monies collected over the summer run out, which is expected to occur in December or January. To help avoid falling into further debt to the lenders, the Stars have asked the NHL for an advance on revenue they would receive after the season. That money would come in a line of credit.
If the team were sold before December, the advance would not be necessary. Sources say there are three buyers who have been approved by the NHL to bid on the Stars, not including Bill Gallacher, who has pulled out of his attempt but could get back at any time.
The THN report said that the NHL is aware of all transactions the Stars’ management makes, but will not limit the team’s spending. And, though the league helped set the team’s budget, they will not “babysit” the Stars.
There have been plenty of rumors concerning bidders, but nothing has gone past that stage. Considering how wacky the Coyotes’ situation has become, the NHL can only hope the Stars’ sale to goes much more smoothly.
Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter
We’ve said this before, but…it appears the Phoenix Coyotes will have a new owner. I’m sure by now the Glendale crying wolf bit is getting tiresome, but according to the Winnipeg Free Press, this could be the real deal.
A spokesperson for the City of Glendale told the Free Press that the city and the Hulsizer group, headed by Chicago businessman Matthew Hulsizer, have agreed in principle to a lease that would allow the group to purchase the Phoenix Coyotes from the NHL. The reported $165 million deal will still need to be approved by the NHL board of governors.
The NHL purchased the team out of bankruptcy for $140 million in the spring of 2009, then reportedly lost $30 million (the city agreed to pay the NHL back). The city put $25 million in escrow while they waited for a new owner.
The city’s back is up against the wall with this deal. The NHL told the City of Glendale they’d need to find a buyer by Dec. 31 or the league would relocate the franchise.
We’ve learned when it comes to the City of Glendale and the Coyotes, anything can happen. During last year’s playoffs, Gary Bettman said on TV that he was happy to welcome Chicago sports mogul Jerry Reinsdorf to the NHL arena as the new owner of the Coyotes. That deal fell through, as did the Ice Edge Holdings group, who also dropped out after negotiations.
Details outside the price have not been released, but we can assume Hilsizer will pick up the NHL’s losses.
Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter
The NHL and the creator of Spider-Man seem like an unlikely duo, but the league and Spider-Man creator Stan Lee announced a new partnership to form Guardian Media Entertainment LLC. Lee will create 30 Guardians, one to represent each NHL team, as a series of superheroes.
Executive Vice President of Marketing for the NHL Brian Jennings said via NHL.com that working with Lee can help reach a new audience, "To be in business with Stan Lee and to be able to bring his latest superheroes to our fans is incredibly exciting to all of us at the NHL," said Jennings. "We are in constant pursuit of new ways to engage our fans and to introduce new fans to hockey, and the business of Guardian Media Entertainment does exactly that."
Motion-capture technology will be used by Vicon House of Moves, who also worked on Ironman 2. A teaser package will be unveiled during the Oct. 8, 2010 panel presentation of The Guardian Project at New York's Comic Con, the entire project will be unveiled Jan. 30, 2011. Watch the NHL.com video
Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter
After a lockout caused the NHL to miss the 2004-05 season, the league was sitting at rock bottom. The league left the most recognizable company in sports ESPN and joined forces with a virtually unknown (to hockey fans at least) network Versus, signing a three-year, $207.5 million deal that included an option for three more seasons.
On the back of the new rules, the Winter Classic, the Olympics and incredibly intense playoffs and Stanley Cup Finals, the league has found its way to relevance, even substantial popularity. And just in time for a new TV deal.
SportsBusiness Journal reported Monday that the NHL expects to take score big with their next deal, possibly even see a 50 percent boost from the aforementioned contract. That would increase the numbers to more than $115 million per year, or $3.87 million per team per year.
The NHL’s momentum could cause the price to go up, SBJ says both ESPN and FOX are considering putting together offers. The ratings on Versus increased significantly since the first year of the contract, the network averaged 118,175 viewers in ’06. Last season the NHL on Versus saw 775,000 viewers through the first 54 telecasts of the Stanley Cup playoffs, then posted 3.6 million viewers for Game 2 of the Stanley Cup, Versus’ highest rated game in the network’s history.
Signs point to Versus retaining the deal, the network has increased distribution from 64 million households to 75 million and its asset value has doubled from $625 million to $1.3 billion. It would be well worth it to Versus to increase the offer by 50 percent; where would they be without their partnership with the NHL? SportsBusiness Journal featured a Turnkey survey which found that 50 percent of more than 1,100 senior-level sports executives said the NHL would stay on Versus. Both ESPN and NBC scored 38 percent of the votes (those polled could vote more than once).
Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter
We’re getting the feeling the NHL is starting to get it. First, the hiring of former NFL’s vice president of programming Charles Coplin as executive vice president of content, then the idea to start an HBO show comparable to “Hard Knocks,” now the NHL will allow in-market streaming, including extending the rights to mobile devices according to John Ourand of Sports Business Journal.
The SBJ report Monday said the league is close to an agreement that would have U.S. teams launch in-market streaming of live games on both broadband and wireless platforms. This, Ourand says, will change the way fans can view local game telecasts and without question promote the game and popularity of in-market teams.
The NHL is closest to agreeing with Fox Sports Net, which holds the rights to 13 teams. The league is also working with Comcast SportsNet, according to the SBJ report.
As for the “they get it” department, the NHL could potentially put itself far ahead of other leagues when it comes to in-market streaming, Major League Baseball has only two teams streaming in-market, the NBA only has one.
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(THE BIZ OF BASEBALL)
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Washington Nationals Release 2011 Season Ticket Prices
MLB.com At Bat Mobile App Now Allows You to Order Food at Ballpark with iPhone
Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter
NHL.com featured this video along with the official changes to the NHL rulebook concerning head hits.
Here’s how “rule 48” reads:
48.1 Illegal Check to the Head- A lateral or blind side hit to an opponent where the head is targeted and/or the principle point of contact is not permitted.
48.2 Minor Penalty- There is no provision for a minor penalty for this rule.
48.3 Major Penalty- For a violation of this rule, a major penalty shall be assessed (see 48.4).
48.4 Game Misconduct- An automatic game misconduct penalty shall be assessed whenever a major penalty is assessed under this rule.
48.5 Match Penalty- The Referee, at his discretion, may assess a match penalty if, in his judgment, the player attempted to or deliberately injured his opponent with an illegal check to the head. 48.6 Fines and Suspensions- Any player who incurs a total of two (2) game misconducts under this rule, in either regular League or playoff games, shall be suspended automatically for the next game his team plays. For each subsequent game misconduct penalty the automatic suspension shall be increased by one game.
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(THE BIZ OF BASEBALL)
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Joe Torre Steps Down; Don Mattingly To Manage Dodgers in 2011
Texas Rangers Enter Four-Year Player Development Agreement with the Triple-A Round Rock Express
Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter
The Pittsburgh Penguins announced Monday that the team and general manager Ray Shero have agreed to a new five-year contract. Shero has been dubbed “the architect” of the 2009 Stanley Cup winning Penguins team.
Shero is responsible for the long-term contracts of stars Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal, Marc-Andre Fleury as well as the promotion of head coach Dan Bylsma (who had been coaching in the AHL) late in the 2009 season.
“I’d like to thank Mario Lemieux, Ron Burkle and the ownership group for showing confidence in me,” Shero said via the Penguins’ website. “They made a decision to hire me back in May of 2006, and it’s worked out for both of us. The ownership group has supported me and given me the resources to do the job. The stability we get from with our ownership group is how you have success both on and off the ice.”
Shero’s craftiness during the ’09 cup run was no more apparent than at the trade deadline when the GM acquired several players who had key roles down the stretch including Chris Kunitz from Anaheim, Bill Guerin from the New York Islanders and claiming Craig Adams from the Chicago Blackhawks.
Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter
